On the back of a chastening loss to France, things do not get any easier for the Republic of Ireland when they welcome the Netherlands to the Aviva Stadium in Dublin for Sunday's Euro 2024 qualifying Group B encounter.

Stephen Kenny's side were seen off 2-0 by Les Bleus on Thursday evening, while their visitors put three unanswered goals past Greece in a straightforward success.

Match preview

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As was the case during their opening Euro 2024 qualifier against France in March - where a Benjamin Pavard thunderbolt settled the tie - Ireland had no answer to Les Bleus' rearguard resilience and evidently had not learned their lessons from their loss to Didier Deschamps's men six months ago.

Paying homage to Pavard's wonderful goal against the Boys in Green during the spring, Aurelien Tchouameni fired a rocket into the bottom corner after Ireland failed to sufficiently close him down, before a sharp turn and finish from Marcus Thuram settled the contest.

Ireland were not without fleeting moments of promise, as Mike Maignan displayed brilliant reactions to keep out a Chiedozie Ogbene effort before the Luton Town man also fired just over the crossbar, but Kenny'e men - who only saw 32% of the ball - simply lost to the better team on the night.

Now with an unsightly record of three defeats from their opening four European qualifiers - only overcoming whipping boys Gibraltar 3-0 in that sequence - Ireland occupy fourth place in the five-team standings, although only a three-point gap separates them from the Dutch in second.

The hosts' upcoming opponents boast a game in hand courtesy of their recent Nations League endeavours, though, and while Ireland have lost just one of their last 16 European Championship qualifiers on home soil, their recent win-loss-win-loss-win pattern does not make for pleasant reading for the more superstitious supporters.

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While Ireland failed to come up with the answers against France, the Oranje crowd were treated to a first-half playmaking masterclass from Denzel Dumfries, who laid on three assists in the opening 45 minutes at the Philips Stadion to help Ronald Koeman's team put Greece to the sword.

Firstly heading back across goal for Marten de Roon to smash home his maiden international goal, Dumfries then provided two pinpoint crosses for Cody Gakpo and Wout Weghorst to complete the rout before the half-time interval, as Koeman's team restored some sense of pride following their Nations League heartache.

Despite possessing home advantage for the Nations League finals, the Netherlands lost a six-goal spectacular 4-2 to Croatia after extra time before defensive frailties plagued them once more in the third-placed playoff, as they were denied a bronze medal by Italy's 3-2 triumph.

Victory over the Greeks marked just a second win from six competitive matches for the Dutch - the other four all ended with Oranje on the wrong end of the scoreline - but they are sitting pretty in second in Group C behind runaway leaders France, who ended the Netherlands' five-game unbeaten run away from home in Euros qualifiers with a 4-0 humiliation six months ago.

Furthermore, the Netherlands have won just one of their five meetings with Ireland since the turn of the millennium - a 4-0 drubbing in a 2006 friendly - which the Boys in Green made amends for with a hard-fought 1-1 draw in 2016, where Luuk de Jong left it until the 85th minute to cancel out a Shane Long opener.

Team News

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Ireland forward Will Keane could hardly have endured a worse evening during Thursday's loss to France, as the Preston North End new boy had only been on the field for 10 minutes as a substitute before sustaining an abductor injury.

Keane was not the only Irish casualty from that game, as left-back Enda Stevens came off at half time owing to an apparent calf problem, and Kenny has conceded that neither man will be passed fit for the visit of the Dutch, where Brighton & Hove Albion hotshot Evan Ferguson will not be present either.

With Stevens out of contention, Wrexham's James McClean should be brought back into the fray for his 102nd appearance in Irish colours, while Aaron Connolly will be the first port of call should any issues arise for first-choice striker Adam Idah.

Netherlands boss Koeman also made a defensive alteration at half time in midweek, as Manchester City's Nathan Ake came off to be replaced by Stefan de Vrij, and it has been reported that the former was struggling with a hamstring complaint in the first half.

There may have been a tactical element to replacing the booked Ake too, although he was still reported to be in some discomfort on Friday, while goalkeeper Justin Bijlow and Atletico Madrid attacker Memphis Depay also withdrew from the camp due to injuries before Thursday's success.

Unless tired legs come into play, Koeman may see no need to alter a winning formula, with De Vrij's likely introduction for Ake being the only possible change that the manager willl consider.

Republic of Ireland possible starting lineup:
Bazunu; Collins, Egan, Duffy; Browne, Cullen, Molumby, McClean; Ogbene, Idah, Knight

Netherlands possible starting lineup:
Flekken; Geertruida, De Vrij, Van Dijk; Dumfries, De Roon, De Jong, Blind; Simons, Gakpo; Weghorst

We say: Republic of Ireland 0-2 Netherlands

Kenny has implored Ireland to deliver the "performance of their lives" if they are to deny the Netherlands a third maximum in a row, but rallying cries may not be enough for a nation whose inconsistency at home has bedevilled them in recent months.

The Boys in Green can boast a respectable head-to-head record versus the Netherlands, but if their win over Greece is anything to go by, Koeman's men are firmly back on track and should leave Dublin with another three points in the bag.


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Written by
Ben Knapton

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